MCC has a Friend promoting 33rd annual Run 4 Relief
The 33rd annual Run 4 Relief 5k and 1k will be Saturday, July 12 in Mt. Hope and will turn its attention toward raising money to provide pigs to several nations.
Everyone needs a friend in their life.
Everyone needs patience.
Together, Friend and Patience helped bring peace and joy to one Ugandan family, and Mennonite Central Committee was there to help.
They also will help highlight the central theme for this year’s Run 4 Relief event.
The 33rd annual Run 4 Relief 5k and 1k will be Saturday, July 12 in Mt. Hope and will highlight pigs this year to support Mennonite Central Committee’s commitment to increase families’ nutrition and their income.
There is a true-life story that brings pigs to the forefront, and it is a story that elicits love and compassion.
Once upon a real time in a small village in rural Uganda, a pig came to live on the farm of Mary Ilero and her husband Julius Egadu.
Smitten by their new acquaintance, Mary dubbed the pig Friend.
Ilero and Egadu needed a friend. The couple had argued a lot about not having enough money to feed and educate their three children. Egadu worked in construction; however, there wasn’t enough work. They both hoped Friend could help them.
In 2017 Friend gave birth to nine piglets. Ilero knew how to keep Friend and her piglets healthy because trainers from MCC partner Action for Peace and Development taught her and Egadu how to feed them and medicate them before APED gave them a pig.
Ilero sold each of the piglets for about $21, using the proceeds to buy a cow she named Patience. Patience had a calf in 2018 and began producing milk the family could drink. Ilero also can use milk to make yogurt, cheese and butter to sell at the market.
With Friend’s second litter of nine piglets, Ilero bought a sewing machine. With the productive sow’s third litter of 10, she took sewing lessons.
Now she is sewing clothing for her family, and she can make clothing to sell. During the week she makes clothing for customers. With more income she can buy beef and fish along with greens, grains and beans to feed her children, age 3-14, and she can help pay for their school fees.
However, she’s unwilling to eat her own pigs.
“I love them,” Ilero said.
The gains keep growing. With funds from Friend’s fourth litter of piglets, Ilero bought a grinder to make nut butter from the ground nuts she was already growing. In town she can sell 5 pounds of ground nut butter for about $2.15 a jar. This also contributes to the family’s income.
That is the story of how a Friend and Patience can breathe life into a family in need, and thus, this story is why the 33rd annual Run 4 Relief 5k and 1k is focusing on providing pigs to those in need.
Through MCC, families in Uganda and Cambodia will have access to pigs to start their litter. Once established, the family can choose to sell the offspring and/or supplement their meals.
The 2025 Run 4 Relief will highlight the opportunity for pigs to keep families healthy. Anyone running or walking will help MCC to assist families around the world.
This year marks the 60th year for the Ohio Mennonite Relief Sale, which will take place at the Mt. Hope Event Center. Featured events will include a 1k run on Saturday, July 12 at 7:30 a.m. and the 5k run at 8 a.m. The running course is to the right of the grounds. Simply look for a white tent, signs and the purple starting balloon.
Admission is $30 for the 1k and $45 for the 5k. Runners can sign up online at ohiomccreliefsale.org/ under Live Events or at www.givesignup.org/Race/OH/MtHope/OhioMCCRun4Relief1K5KRun.
Participants can sign up online until July 10.
MCC will take credit cards at the registration table.
In addition to the runs, MCC will provide piggy banks for the children age 2-8 until they run out. Prizes will be awarded for first, second and third overall, men and women, along with age groups from 20 years old to 70 years and older. T-shirts are given to all entrants. Breakfast will be served afterward in the event center.